What does the strengthening of conservative voices in Indonesia mean for sexual orientation and gender identity and expression? What part is this debate likely to have in the 2019 elections? Dr Jemma Purdey discusses these issues and more with Dr Sharyn Graham Davies in the latest episode of Talking Indonesia.

When Aceh Governor Irwandi Yusuf was arrested for corruption last month, members of the public began asking if his hand would be cut off. But as Dr Dina Afrianty explains, Aceh’s Islamic Criminal Code does not cover corruption, and is primarily concerned with regulating sex.

The past two weeks have seen politicians accelerate efforts to pass long discussed reforms to the Criminal Code (KUHP) to criminalise same-sex relations. Naila Rizqi Zakiah writes that while the focus has been on homosexuality, proposed revisions are much broader, and seek to criminalise all extramarital sex, regardless of gender.

Last week, the Constitutional Court rejected a controversial challenge to the Criminal Code that sought to outlaw same sex sexual relations. Hendri Yulius writes that the decision is a reminder that the state is far from uniform in its response to issues of gender and sexuality.

Last week, the Constitutional Court rejected a petition from the Family Love Alliance (AILA) that sought to criminalise consensual sex outside marriage. Rafiqa Qurrata A’yun writes that AILA’s petition was an attempt to bypass the normal process of formulating criminal law, and could have had serious consequences for the rights of citizens.

Two new online applications, AyoPoligami and Nikahsirri, have caused controversy for promoting polygamy. Hendri Yulius writes that the rise of such applications is a result of a shame and fear of sex in Indonesia, as well as competing religious and secular definitions of marriage.

How has digital media created spaces for a diversity of views on issues important to Indonesian women, including sexuality and religion? What does an Indonesian ‘feminist’ publication look like? In Talking Indonesia this week, Dr Jemma Purdey explores these issues and more with Devi Asmarani, chief editor of online magazine Magdalene.

Following Kartini Day, on 21 April, Talking Indonesia looks at the state of the women’s movement in Indonesia. Dr Jemma Purdey speaks to Dr Intan Paramaditha about why sexuality and the female body continue to be sites for contestation and national anxiety, and how the movement is responding to the “conservative turn” in mainstream Islam.

Indonesian reporting on the arrest of so-called celebrity prostitute Nikita Mirzani has been detailed and profuse. Hendri Yulius writes that, whether we like to admit it or not, we all gain a degree of pleasure from reading these highly sexualised reports.